RAWALPINDI: Women cricketers have welcomed a recent announcement by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that it is considering the launching of a female version of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) T20 tournament.

In a video shared earlier this week, in which he detailed more imminent plans for an Under-19 version of the highly successful short-format competition, PCB chairman Ramiz Raja said the women's edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL) was something he had "in mind" and the PCB would become "the first cricket board in Asia to launch that."

This was the first time a PCB chairman had publicly spoken about the possibility of a women's T20 league at any level.

Pakistan women's team former captain Sana Mir said such league would inspire other countries in the region.

"If Pakistan can be the first one to have a full-fledged PSL we can inspire others. It will be a very good initiative from Pakistan. I think its impact will be far bigger than anyone can see," she told Arab News on Thursday.

"So many Asian countries are now playing cricket, in this part of the world cricket can become one of the biggest sports in Asia for female athletes where other sports are still not here on a competitive level."

She added that the women's league could attract more female athletes to the sport.

"I think that it can be a great way to introduce cricket to different countries and give them a platform and this can be great not only for the athletes, but for female umpires in Asian countries, commentators. So, so many people can benefit for from a women PSL," Mir said.

"We have been talking about the possibility of a woman PSL for the last six years."

Another international cricketer, Nain Abidi, who holds the all-time record as the first Pakistani player to score a century in women’s one-day internationals, praised Raja in a Twitter post as "a man with a vision."

"Women’s PSL will ensure global recognition for the women’s players and will definitely motivate the young girls in Pakistan to take up cricket as a profession!"